Nick Sterner figures the Kansas University women’s tennis team deserves the same rabid support students give the men’s basketball program.

But he realizes it might take some incentives to get students to the tennis matches and other lesser-attended sporting events.

So Sterner, a student senator and junior from Shawnee, is leading an effort to establish a program that would give KU students rewards for attending sports other than football and basketball.

“We’ve got a lot of athletic programs that are up and coming,” Sterner said. “We have some that are rebuilding and some that are already a success but don’t draw huge crowds.”

With the help of the KU athletic department, Sterner and other student senators have begun studying athletics incentives programs at other schools, with hopes of having a system here in the 2005-2006 school year.

Examples include the University of South Carolina, which gives points to students to use toward athletic tickets once they graduate. Several schools have corporate sponsors that give electronics or vacations to those with the most games attended.

At the University of Tennessee, the athletic department gives priority football seating to students who attend other events. Sterner said he wasn’t sure if organizing a similar system around basketball seating would be a good idea, considering the long-standing tradition of students camping out at Allen Fieldhouse for seats.

“That’s definitely a possibility,” he said. “On the other hand, we don’t want to take away from the campers at all.”

The KU athletic department is piloting a rewards program this season with women’s basketball games. Students who attend a certain number of games will receive merchandise such as T-shirts and hats.

Jim Marchiony, an athletic department spokesman, said officials were eager to get the program in place.

“I think the more students you can get to an athletic event, the harder it is for the opponent to play in that venue,” Marchiony said. “Just from a competition standpoint, you want to give your teams the best chance they can to win. It helps the team and fosters tremendous school spirit. Everybody wins.”